COLD.

Ye Gods its cold.  I expect people think I should be used to that sort of weather living up here.  But today was raw.  Having not left the house yesterday I was desperate to have my walk on the Esplanade.

I didnt get far.  

Even the Oystercatchers were huddled out of the wind on the rocks.

On the way home I pass a small pond.  We have had a lot of rain.  There are often a couple of mute Swans on this pond  The pond is much bigger.  I stopped and counted 12 Swans, mainly Whooper, with a couple of Mute.

Here are some of them.

Back home and down the shedudio.  

Continuing work on the canvas production line.  A trio of chooks.

Out of the window the garden birds nicely posed.

A female and a male blackbird.

I had a question from Lyssa as to what the dried flowers were in my window.

 

The dried flowers are from Allium flowers.  Which I absolutely love.  From bulbs these amazing flowers grow. 

As they fade and dry you can see their colour as was.  + imagination !

On the Home Front.

As we were to have a planned power cut from 9 a.m. til 4 p.m. we were to go out for the day.  However the weather was so bad, gale force wind and driving rain, I just couldn't face it.

The DP had lit the wood burner.  Once lit we do not need the central heating on.

Outside continued to blow and rain.

The woodburner did not just keep us warm either.  I put a mug full of water into pans and we had cuppa soups with our lunch and a coffee in the afternoon.  

We have frequent unplanned power cuts due to the strong winds bringing down power lines.  It may be this maintenance done today will lead to us not having so many - and they are usually at tea time !

  However I am going to purchase a kettle to sit on top of the stove.  Now I know the pans work we can have proper soup too.

It wasnt so bad being at home and I got lots of things done - which didnt need the computer !

Electric back on 3.40.

Pat - Daniel Smith Watercolour Ground.  Google it.  I think I got it from the SAA.

This was done the same on a larger canvas.  Good Luck.

Monday, Monday.

Not so good for me and my plans !  Very strong winds, strong enough to blow me over.

So no walk today. (and Pat it was too strong to go down to the shedudio. But I will get you the info on the 'ground' soon.)

Instead I arranged to meet a friend at the Museum of Scottish Lighthouses.  

Coffee in the cafe.  AKA Stevensons tea room.

I and the Museum go back many years.  When the DP and I ran a b&b we sent many a guest to the Museum.  It was one of the few places that remained open all year round.  We had tourists all year round.

On my retirement I became more involved and organised the kids (and parents, aunties, uncles, a nursery !) into craft activities at the Museum.

Which sometimes involved me and the other volunteers into dressing up.  This was our most successful Pirate themed activity session.  We had over 70 kids in plus their extended families !

The DP also became involved as a wedding photographer.

I also worked in the Museum shop.  Which I really enjoyed.

I subsequently became a trustee and then vice chair of the trustees.

But, as I said in another post, nothing stays the same.  New faces came along and mine no longer fitted.  

But every so often I visit and upset a few people!

Today I took some photographs.

I was taking a photo of the rainbow.  But a plus - I got the reflection of Kinnaird Head and the new lighthouse !

I also took a video of a boat out at sea.  Sorry about the ending. But you get the picture.

Quite a good Monday after all.

Tomorrow - well the electric company are switching our area off from 9 a.m. til 4 p.m.  The DP and I will be unavailable.

Technology v craft.

This morning the Dawn Patroller went off before dawn to patrol the gardens and grounds of Haddo House.  Adding to his bird list challenge.  You can read his blog - its on my side bar.  2017 My Birding Year.

I tried to understand the instructions for the new camera.

So I managed a selfie.

So off I went for my walk to the Esplanade.

A heavy rain shower meant I sat in the car for a while and pressed a few buttons.  The camera kept asking me to put the date and time in.  I didnt know how. So I ignored it.

This is the Kessock Burn entering the North Sea where often sea birds congregate.

Further to the left looking out to sea.

Then I found the zoom button.

Whoo. 

So I am thinking Technology rocks.  I came home I downloaded the photos onto the laptop.  Then I couldnt find them......  Ah thats why you put the date in.  I eventually found them in January 2016. Presumably when the camera was created....... Present time and date now set !

On the Art front.  I experimented with sending off a couple of my originals to Photobox to be put onto canvas. ( I am getting no £££s from Photobox.)  I was well impressed.

The reproduction of my originals is excellent.  

I am continuing with painting onto canvas with the help of some ground.  This enables you to use watercolour paint on to it.  Once finished it does have to be varnished as watercolour should not be exposed to light and muck, hence it is usually framed in glass.

This is 10 x 10 cms. The subject at the request of my grandaughter.  The Hare and the Cat are prints onto 30 x 30 cms.

So I now have a production line !  These are all 10 x 10 cms.  

Just have to do the exciting bit now and - paint.  Already begun some hens and a hare.  A brown hare this time.

Ah well its Friday.

When one is retired one day is not much different to another.  Apart from one cannot contact anyone who does actually work 5 days a week from 9 til 5 on a Friday.  I assume that they all buggar off on a Friday.

The internet is wonderful for ordering stuff.  But just try to back,track or alter stuff on a Friday.....They have all gone home.

Anyway I will calm down and show you photos from todays walk.

It was cold and breezy.

The boats were going in and out.

There were no birds to be seen as a very strange man was stood on the beach apparently taking pictures of the surf. For ages.  Whatever turns you on.

And I got a new camera.  I now have to digest the instructions.  Scary.

And more painting.  Ah well its Friday.

Technology again aaaargh.

Strikes again.  The DP and I eat in the evening at the dining table.  Very civilised.  He sets the table cooks the meal and serves it.  I open the wine and set up the music which tonight was sounds of the 70s or some such.  It started with John Lennon and Imagine.

At the end of the meal the DP was getting ready for his Photographic Society evening when the phone rang.  One of the daughters announcing that he was taking part in a group video thing on his phone.....which he had started?  He must have sat on the phone or more likely pressed something as he put it in his pocket....

Mike started a group video chat Mike joined the group video chat.

Emily joined the group video chat.

Emily joined the group call.

Group video chat has ended

Ignore dad, he's gone way beyond a pocket phonecall and pocket video called everyone.

We hope the rest of the daughters and their families did not hear our usual, " Got your phone, wallet, camera, something to write on, stick (for the computer) and car keys?"

Reply, "Will you stop telling me what to do? Where the f*** are my car keys?"

Which so reminded me of this.

A new series of Ladybird Books. Many of us who are around my age will remember these books which we shoved at our kids. This is for us!

This book is hilarious. But I do not want to spoil it for you - or the retailers/publishers who all want their cut. Please look out the whole range of the new Ladybird books. And enjoy. I am not on any commission....

What the DP and I actually did today was have lunch out. During which he got a message on his phone so after lunch we went to a field near where we live. Yes a field. Every year there are thousands of pink footed geese come to stay for the winter.

There are occasionally rarities in amongst them.

And this was it. White fronted goose. (White above the beak.)

I then went down the shedudio and painted.

I am playing about with canvasses. You have to prepare with a substance to take the watercolour, then varnish when its finished. But no framing costs involved so you can offer an original at far less. Yes there is still a lot of effort - how do you price that fellow artists? Here you see work in progress.

And a 'normal' watercolour painting of Oystercatchers and their reflections. Well thats the plan.

AA

Also work in progress.

No technology required.

Changes

As I am British I will first mention the changed weather.  Murky.  We woke to fog and we will be going to bed with it. Not a normal type of weather for the North East of Scotland.

Down to the Esplanade - not so foggy.  As I walked it rolled back to the horizon.

Redshank.

Oystercatcher.

Most Wednesdays since I retired in 2011 I go to an art group.

Another member there was - challenging.  This came to a head last year when they were extremely challenging.  Not just to me but another.  Personally insulting with various false accusations and general nastiness.  Both I and the other person stood up for ourselves and the end result was the departure of the challenger.  

A few weeks back they returned to the art group as if nothing had happened.  I do not know how to cope with it.  Sitting there waiting for yet another challenge was not conducive to creating and learning the artistic things in life. Change.So I have left.

Here is our oil tank.  A huge Berberis has gone. Our gardener who removed the Berberis (and had bits of it blew off his trailer on the road I later travelled) was horrified.  I was thrilled to see we actually have a wider parking space.  Plus no more blood flow caused by the damn thing.  Anyway he is off to "Git sum trillis".  So possibly Honeysuckle, certainly something for the bees.  Although that might upset the oil tanker deliverer.....

Its a funny bit of the garden.

It is to the left of the house looking at the front of.  Scots Pines and not much else.  I will look out the aerial photos and post later.  The Yellow Duck on the fence post is another story for another day !

Ah as I say to my daughters "Nothing ever stays the same."